sailor

My '99 Boxster is the 3rd Porsche I've owned that has had the same affliction; an airbag warning light that won't go off. My dealer tried to charge me $150 to diagnose the problem...a faulty seat belt component. I didn't pay for the diagnosis and they didn't press the issue since it's been the same thing on so many cars. I also opted not to pay the $450 to replace the part this time. I decided I could live with the light for that price. My question is: Has anyone actually found the problem with the seat belt sensor and fixed it rather than replace it?
You would think that Porsche whould have solved this issue by now. Perhaps they have....Any help will be appreciated.
Oh, and one other thing; My service advisor said I should replace my Mass airflow sensor to the tune of $650. I asked if this is a recommended maintenance item at this time, I have about 47K miles on my car, and he said " Well, the technician suggested it." Given the seatbelt thing, I told him I'd do it later. My question is, "How do I know it's time to replace the MAS?" does it wear out gradually, or does it eventually crap out all at once? I read a post about one that went out causing the owner to worry that his engine was history. I don't mind spending the money if it's the right thing to do, but I feel as though the service dept at my dealer is just trying to create work. Again, any help is appreciated.

Vampyre

If the MAF is throwing out a code, then it might need to be cleaned or replaced, but I would say since you only have 47K on the car you should be fine.

Does the car have a CEL light on for MAF issues?

HHPorscheTech

The only reason he should think about the MAF is because of a CEL. I have never recommended to someone that due to mileage it is time to replace it. Do they fail yes, but typically through out codes 1128,1130 for adaption values.
There is no fix for the seat belt buckle other than replacement. The new buckle has gold plated contacts, and Porsche requires a rewire of the seatbelt ground connection. Since yours is a 99 it is recommended to do both seats.
For the real reason your light comes on and is related to the seatbelt buckle. It is a resistance problem in the contacts. Flex of the connector or high resistance in the ground is why Porsche has issued a TSB on how to correctly fix the problem.

egress91506

HHPorscheTech re: rewiring the ground. What does the rewiring look like? I have an occasional airbag light associated with the driver's receptacle. I've noticed that the wiring under the seat looks like it has been changed. I also notice a large lug bolted to the pan with multiple ground wires going to it and some other ground wires that look they were fiddled with. Thanks.

99firehawk

if its done right you wouldnt know unless you had done one.

Mafs can casue other problems and not throw faults, but commonly they throw rich mix faults

HHPorscheTech

Egress91506 ... I have run into reoccuring airbag lights after the initial repair make sure that the technicians have installed the same size wire, are butt connected and then soldered for a proper connection. The only way to tell is to unwrap the protection of the wire and make sure the connections are done properly. Depending on the year both seats should be done...

egress91506

Thanks HHPorscheTech, I'll check it out.

HHPorscheTech

Also for repeat repairs Porsche says to replace the airbag CU. If your CU ends in 00 have them replace it with a 02. Mostly it is high resistance caused by incorrectly repaired wires